Dirigible light



C. SKLAREK DIRIGIBLE LIGHT Aug. 8, 1933.

, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. ll

Aug. 8, 1933. c. SKLAREK DIRIGIBLE LIGHT Filed OC.. ll, 1.930

2 Sheets-'Sheet 2 Patented Aug. 8,

l iT

`1,921,785 DRIGIBL LIGHT ClifordSllarek, Chicago, lIll., assigner to Intery national Spotiight Corporation, Chicago, Ill., l

l la-Corperation of Illinois Appetite@ zombie A11, 1930. seria; Nalfismcvs 7 claims. (01." aia-n n) "This invention relates to improvements 'in dirigiblelightarand more particularly dirigible lights adapted for use on automobiles and other automotive vehicles, Whichlights are commonly` 5 called spotlights. The present invention is in the nature of an improvement on such type of light showninmy '3o-pending application 253,820 filed February 13, 1928,A now Patent 1,906,489, issued May, 1933. Y

,The type of dirigible lightv rei-erred to comprises, in its broadest aspects, `an outer head housing on which is rotatabiy mounted about one axis a lamp casing; a handle housing at the .op-`

posite or inner end, the head and handle housings 5 beingrigidly united to rotate yin unison about cliilerent axis, by a hollow tubular connection; an operating handle rotatably mounted on thev handie housing; an electric control switch on the.'

or backlash between the movable parts and to 30 compensate for Wear to thereby prevent looseness Vor rattling when the light is in service.

An object of the present invention is to provide a dirigible light of the type hereinbeore referred to and vpossessing all of the desirablechar- 35 acteristics thereof, the present improvement being such as to reduce the number of necessary parts to a minimum Without any loss of advantages or functionsto the end that the cost of material and labor of assembly maybe greatly f 40 reduced.

Another object of the present 'invention is to provide in a. dirigible light of the type'indicated, an eflicientrelectric switch comprised of `few parts with low cost of manufacture and suchthat the switch may be readily applied tothe handle housing or removed for repairs or inspectionwithout disturbing or disassembling any, vof the other parts.

Still l another object of the invention is yto providea supporting and attaching bracket for v the light, which, bracket is specially formed to adapt it as a drill guide in boring the usual hole through the automobile superstructure or the H55 Llike forf receiving th'egtubular connection, to

'corresponding to the` .section lines 3 -3 and 4Q-4 On `its upperface, as shown lin Figure'msaidfsechorizontal axial alinement the recess 20,l the thereby minimizethe cost ofapplicationoif the light. L

Other objects ofthe inventionfwill more clean ly appear from thefdescription and claims here'- inafterwfollowing. i i In the drawings forming a part .of this Vspeci-l fication, Figure 1 is a part vertical, sectional View,v ,part .elevational view offa. dirigible light em.-v

. bodying my improvements, showing the same ,ap-

plied to the body o1.' anautomobile. `:iFigurezZ is anA enlarged, detailed, sectional view 'illustrating more `particularly vthel construction of the mproved electric switch in thehandle housing ofv the ligh.` Figures 3 and 4 are sectional Views respectively of Figure 2. And Figure 5 is a some1- lwhat enlarged, detailed, sectional view correr spending to the line 5 5 of Figurel.

ln'saiddrawings,` :'10 denotes a corner post .or other` part 'of the super-structure of an auto,- mobile or other automotivevehicle` tofwhich my improved lightY ist adapted to-.lbe attached, al-

- though as will be understood by those skilled in the-.art the light sapplica'ble tooutsidejinstalle ments by suitable modification `of theattaching brackets. TheV improved-light, as shown, Vcomprises a head housing A; 1a `handle' housing :335;- a tubular connector C rigidly assembled with both of the housings A and-B; a lampcasing or shell D; an operating vhandle E; together with suit- 85 y vable attaching brackets'sWitch and` other parts v hereinafter described. i

The. head housing .A is preferably in the form of a casting. havingY two main sectionsall and 12 ,"disposedapproximately at right angles ,to each 90 other, the housing A being hollowed out, as clear from Figure ,1.` `Thesection 1.1, disposed vertical,-

lyas shown inFigure 1;.has-an interior vcircular recess 13 and an inwardly `'extending ange or webigthe latter having ajournal` hearing 1.5. 9

tionll :is formed with acircular'recess iii-.into which extends, radially, a' stopor limiting lug 117 .for the purpose hereinafter described. .In axial `alinement with the recess f1.3 .atthe bottom of 'the secured tothe corresponding `or-fofli-ter endof the tubular connection C, as showninFigure'l In housing A is provided, at its outer end, with an opening 22 of the same or slightly larger diameter than the recess V20, said opening 22 being adapted to be closed or covered by a similar, light sheet metal snap cap or closure 23.

Rotatably journaled. in the bearing 15, is the shank 24 of a bevel gear 25, the gear 25 being of larger diameter than the shank 24 and providingv 18. Bearing against theupper end ofthe gear Y shank 24 is the lower 'flat face of a saddle or block 28, the upper face of which is conformed to t the lamp casing D. Said block or saddle 28 has a hollow upstanding hub 29 preferablyv of non-circular cross section extended' through a correspondingly shaped opening in the shell D. On the interior of the shell D is a specially shaped spring washer 30 having 'a horizontal section 31 against which seats the head 32 of an axially perforated bolt 33 that is extended loosely down Vthrough the saddle block 28 and threaded within the shank 24 of Y the gear 24-25. By screwing the bolt 32-33 tightly into the gear 24 25, it is evident that the casing D will vbe tightly clamped between the washer 30 and block 28and the latter in turn tightly clamped to the gear 24-25. c

On its underside, the block 28 is bored to tightly receive therein a pin 34, the lower end of which works within the recess 16 in the upper face of the section 11 of the head housing A, it being obvious that said pin34 will be limited in its rotation by engaging the radial lug 17, best shown in Figure l5, so that the lamp casing will be limited to rotation slightly less than 360. As shown in Figures 1 and 5 thepin 34 is so located that it is partially received within a shallow groove 35 in the hub of the gear 24-25 so that said pin also functions as a key or spine between said gear and the saddle block 28, to insure their rotation in unison and in both directions without danger kof the bolt 32-33 becoming loose or unscrewed.

With the construction so far described, it will be observed that not only will the lamp casing always be rotated in unison with the bevel gear 24-'25 but that,-because of the Yspring 27, the saddle block will always be maintained taut against the upper bearing face of the section V11 of the housing A, thus eliminating any looseness and automatically compensating for any wear which may occur on the two relatively rotating surfaces.

Where the light is mountedfor so'called inside control, as shown in Figure 1, a supporting Yattaching bracket of the type indicated at 36v will be employed, the same having laterally extended anges 37-37 by which it may be attached by screws to the post or other -support 10. The bracket 36 has a relatively elongated, horizontally disposed, cylindrical section 38within which is preferably cast a thin sleeve 39 of steel or other suitable hard materialY and ofan accurate inside diameter to function as a guide for a drill in boring the hole `40 through which the tubular conneet-ion Cis ultimately passed. Inapplying lights of the typeA disclosed, particularly to the corner posts of automobiles, extreme accuracy is required -in drilling the hole forgthe tubular connection,

' since the corner posts are nowof relatively small Said gear 24-25 with the spring 27 as-A Windshield giassvetc. in drimng the hole, it being truey as to certain makes of automobiles that there is not more than a possible leeway of g or 1/8 of an inch in centeringA the hole to be drilled. Heretofore, it has been customary to rst spotthe drill hole by employing a temporarily applied drill thin flange overhanging a reduced section 4 2 on the inner end of the housing A so as to provide an additional bearing support for the housing A in its'rotation about a horizontal axis.

On the inside of the post or :other support 10, is a second inside bracket 43 having diametrically disposed'arins alsoA adapted to be secured by screws. Said bracket has a split hub bearing section 44, the friction between which and the tubular connection C may be adjusted by means ci the screw bolt 45. To limit the rotation of the tubular connection C about the horizontal axis and also to prevent the same irom working outwardly, a split collar 46 is frictionally. secured thereto,Y as by means of an adjusting screw bolt 47, said collar having a shoulder 48 cooperable with a shoulder 49 on the bracket 43 to limit the rotation, as will be understood.

The handle housing B is preferably in the form ci a casting having a main horizontal section 5D split and secured to the tubular connection C. as by the adjusting screw` bolt 51'. Depending Vfrom the horizontal section 55 is a hollow bearing section or extension 52, the latter having an interior annular recess 5'3 providingV a shoulderf54 near the bottom thereof. The tubular connection C is extended within the housing B and contains within it a hollow shaft 55, the latter carrying a bevel gear 156 at its outer or left hand'end, as

viewed in Figure l, which gear meshes with the gear 25. AThe righthand endof the shaft 55 is extendedinwardly of the tubular connection C and made of square or other non-circular cross section so as to receive thereon a bevel gear 56, the latter rotating with the shaft but being slidable or adjustable lengthwise thereon. Said gear 56 has a journal section 57 rotatable in acorre- To compensate for inaccuracies of manufacture and totake up wear, one or more shims 62 may be interposed between the upper end of the handle proper E and the lower end oithedepending section 52 of the handle housing. To maintainv the parts taut-and to prevent backlash, a'coilspring 63 is slipped over thevshank 59 and interposed between the gear 58 and the'shoulder 54, it being evident that said spring will normally urge the gear 58 upwardly into tight mesh with the gear 55, To permit assembling of the gear 5B and its shank in the housing B, the -latter is Vprovided at the top thereof with an .opening 54 of diameter equal to or slightly larger than that of the gear 58, said opening beingl normallyrclosed by'a sheet 'threaded into the lower end of theV gear shank 59. I

ige'eiyss metal snapP cover or vcapj65, the latter preferably being ofthe same' size `asl the cap '423V soas to peri. mitruse 'of the same size capsand reduce cost-of `manufacture.

width (see Figure 3) to receive end wise'therein,`

two correspondingradially extending lugs 68v and 69 of a lead-in block 70 made ofbakelite or other suitable insulating material. By reason' of the different size slotsand-lugs 66, 67, 63 and69, improper a'ssembly of the lead-inblock within the housing islther'eby prevented. SaidleadLin block is of generally y*circular form and centrally thereof has moulded therein a preferably brass com'- bined'binding post, bearing and contact element 71, the` inner end of which is enlarged, as indicated at 72, and centrallyapertured to receive the stripped end 73 -of an electricalwire or conductor 74, the same being held by a binding screw 75. TheV other or righthand end of the element 71 is of `reduced diameter, as indicated at75,

. and forms a journal bearing for an insulated rotor or knob '76; To one sideof its center,' theV lead-in block 70 has also moulded therein a metal contact 77 to which is soldered the stripped end -78 of theilead-in wire 79 which,.as shown in Figf ure 1, is entered through the -inner end of theY Yhousing B and fixed to the tubular connection C by'a suitable ring clip 80. As will be understood, said conductor 79 leads toa suitable source of electricity," as for instance, the battery of the. car. Therotor 76"is moulded with a specially shaped recess, best shown in' Figures 2 vand 4. Said ,rev

cess comprises two spaced circular portions y81---81 connected Vby atransverse recess 82 to thereby receive a specially formedspring, which comprises twocoils' 83-83 with a connecting section 84 therebetween. The'free end of one -of the coils 83 is so positioned as to .be brought into Vand'out of contact with the contact element 77 from the `latter through the conductor 7B-74, Ywhich in turn is passed through the shaft 55 and thence through the bolt 32-33 into a socket shell 86 in the lamp casing where its other stripped end is secured to a contact 87'mounted in a spring influencedinsulated washer 88. Said contact 87 is adapted to engage the usual contact atthe inner end of a lamp bulb 89. Y

The rotor '76 has an inner annular enlargement 90, thereby forming a` shoulder so that said rotor is held in assembled position by `means of a sheet metal capV or ferrule 91, the latter in turn being secured Yto the housingB by two screws 92-92, which also havetheir inner ends entered in recesses 93-93 in the lead-in block so as to also retain the latter in proper position within the housing B. To limit the rotativerrnovement ofA the. rotor 76, the latter is provided with an arcu' ate recess 94 within which is extended a lug 95 formed integral with the lead-in block 70, the angular throw being limited,.as will be evident from an inspection of Figure 4. With the construction shown and referring particularly toFigure 2, it will be evident that'the spring 83-5-84 normally urges the rotor 76 outwardly or toward the rightV and will thereby create sufficient friction between `has its inner end of reduced sectionfas'shown vat 96, the same being interiorly threaded to re.-

' erly foousthe `lamp flector 100.

V'into place before Vtheswitchassembly is applied,

Said rotor and-the cap s1 tdhold the rotorin'any ,t

angular adjusted position.

Referring now to Figure 1, `the socket shell 86 ce'ive a screw 97, the latter having its head 'counter "sunk inthe' casing D. vSaid screw 97 carriesv a Washer .'98 .between which and the `casing `is au spring 99,'vth'ereby normally urging the socket shell V`86,towa `r d the left but 'permitting adjust` ment axially thereof by the screw 97 so as to prop` YIn assembling thev parts, thefollowing general procedure is followed; Assuming the head housing A and tubularconnection C securedl together, the bevel gear 156 with itsshaft 55 secured theretoand the springl 20 slipped thereover, is entered endwisethrough'the openinga ofthe housing A. Next, the vgear 24-25 with the 'spring 27v assembled thereover is" entered vertically through the opening 18, the gearl Vbeing pressed to the Vright during this operation sufficient to permit clearance in entering'rthe gear 25. After thelatter is in place, the gear 158 isrreleased and will be forced into mesh by the spring 20. The saddle` blccl; 28, casing D, washer1391andbolt 3.2Vv are then brought to'gether'and secured by the bolt, as will be understood.v The conductor 74 is then vso ybulb withjresp'ect tothe reput inplacearld suitably connected to the contact 87` withinthe'casii-ig D,4th'ese parts constituting the head end assembly ready'fer shipment. The

handle housing B has the gear V58, spring 63 and handle E assembled therewith, ashereinbefore and secured tothe handle housing Bin the nian- VVdescribedl The switch assembly is alsowapplied ner indicated in the preceding description'. WhenY Bis then slipped` overthe endfof thetubular con'- 1 'nection C and secured" tightly in place `by the screw bolt'51.v Duringthis operationjthegear 56 is slipped over thesquared endl ofY the shaft 55, it

being understood that said gearedV has been slid l the gearlS being depressedforthis purpose while thefgear'56isinserted inits bearing in the handle housingB. With the handle housing new applied to the tubular connection" C, the cap 65 is removed and the-stripped terminal 74 secured 1 to the binding post by the screw `75, whereupon the light is ready for operation, as soon as the Vlead-in'wire 79 isconnected to a' suitable source Vof current. l i

with the Construction described, it is evidenti that access tothe'various partsis at all times Yavailableand that the several sub-assembliesmay carrying out my invention, thesame is merely l sofi illustrative and I contemplate all changes and modications that come within the scope of the claims appended hereto.

I claim:

1. In a dirigible light, `the combination with l said bearing, said gear having a shoulder; a lamp casing; means rigidly connecting said casing and gearto rotate in unison; a handle carried by the handle housing; operating means between said handle andgear for effecting rotation of the latter and casing; and yielding means directly interposed between said shoulders of the head housing and gear, the head housing having an opening opposite said `shoulder of 'the head `housing and through which said gear may be entered and removed.

2. In a dirigible light of the character described, the combination with a housing; of two meshing gears rotatably journaled within said housing, said gears having their axes atan angle and intersecting at a point within the housing; an

' expansion spring interposed between one of said gears and the housing normally urging said gear toward the other, said housing having two openings provided therein, one opening being axially opposite one of the gears'and the other axially opposite the second of the gears and adapted to permit passage of the respective gears therethrough for assembling Withthe housingrsaid spring allowing of temporary retraction of its corresponding gear during assembling.

3. In a dirigible light of the character described, the combination with a head housing having two journal bearings Vthereinuthe axes of which are disposed substantially at right angles to each other; a pair of meshing bevel gears journaled in the respective bearings; and Yexpansion springs interposed between each gear and the housing, said springs normally urging the gears into mesh with each other and said housing having two openings axially opposite the two gears respectively, perrnitting insertion of the gears therethrough for assembling with the housing, the springs adapting the gears for temporary retraction When being assembled. Y,

4. In a dirigible light of the character described, the combination with a head housing; ofv a driven gear journaled in said housing; a lamp casing; a saddle block on the outer side of said casing bearing on one end of said gear; a pin carried by said block having an extended end movable in a groove of the housing; means limiting the angular movement of said pin with respect to the housing; a washer within the casing; and a bolt extended through said washer, block and gear, rigidly uniting thesame for rotation in unison with respect to the housing.

Y 5. In a dirigible light, the combination'with longitudinally `separated head and handle hous-` ings rigidly united by a tubular connection; a;

v lamp casing rotatably mounted on the'l head housing; a lateral extension on said handle housing having a journal bearing therein; a driving'gear journaled in said bearing, saidgear having a shank extended through said extension; a handle secured to the extended end of said shank; .yielding means interposed between said gear and eX- tension normally urging said 'gearendwisa said handle housing having an opening axially opposite said gear to permit insertion of the'latter therethrough; and operating means between said gear and casing for enacting rotation of thelatter. p Y

6. In a dirigible light of the character described, the combination with, longitudinally separated head and handle housings rigidly connected by a hollow tubular connector; of a lamp casing rotatably mounted on one of said housings; an operating handle rotatably mounted on the* other of said housings; driving mechanism between said handle andlamp casing foreiecting rotation of the .latter uponrotation of the handle, said mechanism includingY a pairl of meshing gears disposed tracted position When the other cooperable bevel gear is inserted or removed. y.

'7. In a dirigible light of the character described,

the combination of longitudinally separated head and handle housings rigidly united by a tubular connector; of a lamp casing rotatably mounted on the head housing; an operating handle rotatably mounted on the handle housing; driving mechan nism between said handle and lamp casing for effecting rotation of the latter upon rotation of the handle, said mechanism including a driving gear located in the handle housing and connected to the handle, said handle housing having an opening opposite said driving gear whereby the latter may be inserted'or removed a switch unit detachably mounted on thehandle housing opposite the end of said connector, said switch unit having a binding post disposed within the handle housing v13o Y and opposite said opening thereof and an electrical conductor extending from said'bindin'gpost nection and disconnection of said conductor with the binding post being` effected, Vthrough said lopening of the handle housing.

l CLIFFORD SKLAREK.

through the connector to the lamp casing, con- 

